Article
PuriProtect® – a new neuroprotective irrigation solution for vitrectomy?
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Published: | June 29, 2009 |
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Objective: Retinal damage can be induced iatrogenically during vitreoretinal surgery. Risk factors are light-toxicity by endoillumination, chemical-toxicity by the irrigation-solution and mechanical damage by intraoperative alterations of the retina. PuriProtect® is a new irrigation solution, which will be introduced to the market this year. Its composition is basically the same like Balanced Salt Solution (BSS®, Alcon) except that of 3mM taurine is added. Up to now no investigations have been performed whether PuriProtect® in comparison to BSS® is neuroprotective or not.
Methods: We investigated the effect of BSS® and PruriProtect® on the function and survival of retinal ganglion cells (RGC-5) in cell-culture (incubation for 2h with the irrigation solutions) and in whole-mount-preparations of bovine eyes (incubation for 3h with the irrigation solutions). For additional stress induction 12mM (cell-culture) or 250µM glutamate (whole-mount) was added during the incubation. To evaluate mitochondrial function and survival of RGCs MTT-test and Live/Dead staining was used.
Results: Without the addition of glutamate there was no difference in mitochondrial activity of RGC-5 cells when irrigated with BSS® or PuriProtect®. However, after induction of additional stress with 12mM glutamate a highly significant difference in mitochondrial activity was observed. In the whole-mount-preparations Puriprotect® showed a significant protective effect without and with the addition of 250µM glutamate.
Conclusions: PuriProtect® irrigation solution has neuroprotective properties, especially in blocking glutamate induced excitotoxicity. Elevated glutamate-level can be encountered during hypoxia, in retinal detachment, during endoillumination or other conditions. Therefore PuriProtect® may prevent iatrogenically induced death of retinal ganglion cells during vitrectomy.